


A Fresh New Hell

by rowofstars



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-27
Updated: 2016-01-27
Packaged: 2018-05-16 12:15:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5828209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rowofstars/pseuds/rowofstars
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the lovely rufeepeach for her prompt: Swanfire meet up in the Underworld.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Fresh New Hell

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rufeepeach](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rufeepeach/gifts).



> This is my first Swanfire fic. It's part crack, part weird angsty reunion.

The air rushed out of Emma’s lungs, his name caught in her throat.

It was impossible. Surreal. She almost scoffed because it was pretty fucking ridiculous that they were even _in_ the Underworld in the first place, much less that she would see _him_ here.

“Hey, Emma.”

He had that smile, that coy, sarcastic, sweet half-crooked grin. She could never decide between kissing it off his face or clocking him one with her fist.

Right now she couldn’t move. Her feet were rooted to the spot while her mind and heart flailed helplessly.

She swallowed. “N-neal,” she gasped. She grabbed at the pendant around her neck, the swan pressing into her palm. Her mind swirled. This wasn’t happening.

“Surprise,” he said, holding his arms out to either side, his smile widening along with his eyes.

“What?” she managed. “What the _hell_?”

He crooked an eyebrow. “More like what _in_ Hell, but -” Suddenly, a fist collided with his chest and he grunted and staggered backwards. “Ow! Geez, Em - _ow_! Hey!”

Another fist thudded solidly against his upper arm and he looked down to see Emma’s eyes wild and wide. She looked confused and angry, lost, and his heart ached.

“Y-you shouldn’t be here!” she screamed, moving from hitting him to pushing him back. “What are you _doing_ here?”

“Whoa, whoa,” he replied, back up with his hands raised. “Look it’s - it’s complicated. I -”

“Complicated?” she repeated, taking two steps towards him. She breathed slow and deep, trying to calm herself. “Complicated? Is that the best you can do? You’re in _Hell_ , Neal!”

He looked around, frowning a bit. “Yeah, I -.” Then he sighed. “Look, I know, it’s weird. For a while I was nowhere, then -” He shrugged. “Then I was just here.”

Emma’s lips pressed together for a moment before she exhaled and ran a hand through her hair. She felt like she’d been walking for years instead of just a few hours. Part of her hated herself for wanting to stay right here on this little chunk of mountain, forgetting about her search for Killian, forgetting about everything. “How?”

Neal shrugged again. “No idea. But I know why I’m here.”

She shook her head, her eyes closing and then opening, as if she could blink him away like the black fog from earlier. She felt the sting of tears at the corners of her eyes and when she blinked again one trailed down her cheek.

He sighed and tilted his head, reaching out a hand to touch her shoulder tentatively. “Don’t, Emma, please.” She sniffled and shuffled forward, her hands coming up to clutch at his shirt. He wrapped his arms around her, and squeezed. “Hey now,” he said softly, daring to break the rules and drop a kiss to the top of her head as she cried into his chest. “Come on, none of that.”

“You’re dead,” she sobbed. “Zelena, she -”

Neal hushed her quietly, swaying gently as she let herself really cry for the first time since his funeral. Even then she’d kept most of it in. She was the strong one after all, the Savior.

After a few minutes, she pushed against him and he moved away, letting his arms fall to his sides.

“I’m sorry, Emma.”

She shook her head again and wiped her hands across her face, brushing away the salty tracks left by her tears. “No. You have nothing to be sorry about.”

Neal swallowed and licked his lips. “Look, we don’t have much time.”

She laughed, humorlessly. “Yeah. Never do.”

He laughed too, short and more like a huff of annoyance. “Yeah.” He looked off to the distance, towards the dark mountains shrouded in a purple mist. “Look, we really don’t,” he said. “Not if you don’t want to end up a permanent resident.”

Emma straightened and took a steadying breath. “Right. Do you know the way to the portal?”

He pulled a face and his bobbed side to side. “Eh… kinda?” She gave him a look he knew all too well and his lips twisted, fighting a smile. “I do, but it’s not gonna be easy.”

She sighed. “It never is. But Rumplestiltskin’s here too, and -”

“My _dad_?” Neal exclaimed. “You brought my father to the Underworld?”

“He was the one who opened the gate, so -”

Neal spun around and then let his head drop for a moment. When he looked up Emma was biting her lip. “He opened the gates to the Underworld?”

Emma shrugged. “It’s a long story. Let’s just get going and I can tell you on the way.”

He muttered something to himself and raised a hand, indicating they should head back the way she’d come. “So I’m guessing it’s not just you and my papa.”

“No, not exactly,” she answered. “Belle’s here too.”

“Oh no,” Neal groaned. “Poor Belle.”

“And my parents.”

He stopped walking and stared at her.

“And Regina,” she added, walking a few steps past him before stopping. “And, um…”

Neal frowned. “Um, what?”

“Henry,” she said, wincing.

“ _Henry_?!”

She rolled her eyes. “I know, okay! Let’s just do this, and you can yell at everyone later.”

“ _Jesus_ ,” he mumbled, heading back down the side of the hill, picking his way over the jagged rock. “I leave for five minutes and everyone goes to Hell.”

Behind him, Emma groaned and kicked a loose stone at him, and Neal smiled.


End file.
